Saving Ziva
by 01Tally
Summary: Ziva's recent strange behavior confuses Tony- and thus he attempts to discover the root cause of her recent mood swings, random behaviors, and changes in appearance.But what is REALLY going on? ZivaXTony Tiva
1. Chapter 1

"Ziva, you're late." Gibb's didn't even turn from his desk. Tony's head popped up from where he'd been bending over his paperwork

"Yeah Ziva, you're-" He stopped mid-sentence "Du-am, what happened to you?" Ziva's hand immediately flew up to cover her black eye

"Just a fall while running. Nothing all that serious." She slid into her seat and dropped her backpack by her seat. She started right into her paperwork, without the usual childish banter between her and her workmates.

"Morning, Ziva." Abby's cheerful voice came from across the room, near the elevator.

"Yes Abby, it is morning." Abby frowned a bit, her normal bouncy nature calmed somewhat at Ziva's curt response.

"Anyways, see, I found this envelope on my door this morning taped to my door. With your name on it." Ziva immediately grabbed the envelope and stuffed it into her pack "Uuuuumm…yeah, I was kind of wondering what was in it?"

"And so you will continue wondering." Ziva said, an edge of ice to her voice. Abby, her enthusiasm tempered, quickly turned to Gibbs.

"Soooooooo…I was wondering something." Gibbs didn't even bother looking away from his screen

"What was it you were wondering Abby." Gibb's voice barely rose at the end of the sentence, making it not a question but a sentence.

"See, I have no cases right now and there was something I really, really, really wanted to go to…"

"What is it, Abby?"

"My favoritist band EVER is having a concert this afternoon and it would take me two whole hours to get there!"

"Your favorite band?"

"Plastic Death! They're this most amazing band and friend got tickets to go see them!!"

"A friend?"

"Yes, a friend." Abby turned her volume down and cooled her hyper-activity.

"Gee, Abby, what's with the sudden loss of volume?"

"Nothing. Nothing at all."

"This wouldn't happen to be a _male_ friend would he?" DiNozzo pried further.

"Ok, yes he's male, but so is about 50% of the world's population."

"Does this male friend have any special relationship with you?"

"Yes, he is a _friend_ Tony." Abby put extra emphasis on friend, and Tony was still curious.

"So, this male _friend_ is he-" Gibbs stood up.

"Just got an email from an old contact with the police. They've got a case at a hotel and she says that we'll eventually be called in. Might as well go now."

"She, boss?" Tony questioned.

"Yes, she's the daughter of an old friend." Tony made an 'ah' face, and silently followed Gibbs, Ziva and McGee quickly catching up at the elevator

I'm new to writing fanfictions (this is my first) and while I would like an honest critique, please do not do any of that flaming nonsense.


	2. Chapter 2

Written at 0300 so if it sucks…deal with it.

…

About 23 minutes later all of them were at the crime scene.

"I just don't understand." The hotel manager said "This women claims that the pool tried to kill her?"

"All she can remember, before waking up bloody and beaten on the pavement beside the pool, is the 'pool trying to kill her' as she phrased it."

"So my pool's under investigation?" The manager looked somewhere between pissed and confused.

"We're just looking over the crime scene. Two dead marines and one barely conscience one were found next to your pool. There's grounds for some suspicion." Gibb's walked around the perimeter of the pool, examining the space where the one live and two dead marines were found.

"Well, I don't see why, I mean you're scaring all my guests and-"

"And we'll let you know when we're done here." Tony led the man out the door of the pool.

"So what are we looking for?" McGee asked, wandering around the edge of the pool with his camera, snapping pictures of the remaining two bodies, both of which were, unlike the live marine, perfectly clean and without a bruise or cut.

"Well, I know what I think we should be doing." Tony announced grandly upon his re-entrance to the pool area.

"And what is that, DiNozzo?" Gibbs asked, staring intently at a blood stain on the concrete by the water.

"We should all go swimming. I mean, if she says that the pool tried to kill her, we should test out that theory, right?" Gibbs glanced at him, and then pulled out his phone.

"Don't move." He ordered the rest of the team, before walking out the double doors.

"His phone didn't ring." Ziva observed, before going back to examining the crime scene. She bent over to examine a blood stain near the base of one cinderblock wall. Tony came over and leaned over her.

"Whatcha doin?" Ziva spared him an annoyed glance out the corner of her eye before turning back to the wall and looking at another stain about a quarter of an inch to the right.

"Studying a bloodstain." She said it like it would be the most obvious thing in the world.

"Well, aren't you a good little agent." He taunted. He leaned over farther and rested his head on his fisted hands, before resting his elbows on Ziva's back.

"Dammit, Tony!" She screamed in an uncharacteristically high pitched voice as she jumped up, her face twisted with pain. Tony was surprised.

"S-sorry Ziva," He stuttered out, eyes wide, looking somewhere between scared and worried. "Are you alright? What's wrong?" Her faced quickly flashed between pain, regret, and then her stony-faced Mossod mask that always made him worry.

"I am fine." But she hissed the words through clenched teeth and he couldn't tell whether she was in pain or angry with him. McGee, who had been quietly observing their exchange, went back to photographing the two dead bodies, just as Gibbs came back into the pool room.

"Why aren't you working, DiNozzo?" Gibbs asked, observing McGee, who was still photographing, and Ziva, who had managed to crouch down again and pull out a camera in all of the 2 seconds between her exchange with Tony and Gibb's entrance. Everyone got back to work, all of them steadily continuing their examination of the crime scene in compatible silence for about half an hour, when two more members of the team joined them in the pool room.

"Hi guys!" Abby's loud voice echoed in the room to an almost painful volume, and Ducky's hands subconsciously reached for his ears.

"Abby, would you mind toning it down a bit?" He asked gently, so as not to offend her.

"Yeah, sure!" She said brightly, her voice only slightly lower than before. "Anyways, why'd you call us here Gibbs?" She asked, practically bouncing in place.

"Ask DiNozzo." Tony's head popped up. To discover everyone, except Ziva, staring intently at him.

"Whatever he blames on me, I can assure you it wasn't my fault." Everyone still stared. "Ok…whatever he blames on me, I can promise you I didn't do it on purpose." When there was no response Gibbs finally spoke again.

"We're going swimming." Now everyone, even Ziva, stared at Gibbs. "Actually, you guys are going swimming." Nobody moved. "Well, what are you all waiting for? There's changing rooms behind that door, swimsuits complimentary of the hotel in each. Get going." As everyone turned towards the door, as strange as this order was, they heard Ducky, at the back of the group, yell at Gibbs.

"This wouldn't have anything to do with the fact that the Director wanted you to do that stack of paperwork, would it?" Gibbs gave what could almost be called a smile.

"Who, me? Shirk my duties?" He turned away, headed towards the doors. "I'm going to interview the hotel's night manager." They all crammed into the hallway, boys using the changing stall on the right, girls on the left. Ziva allowed Abby to go first, and McGee reached the door to the men's room first. DiNozzo, in a moment of gentlemanly nature, offered Ducky the next turn. Ducky declined, claiming that the sight of him in the bathing suit was a sight he would not inflict upon them. Despite the others protests, he went to remove the bodies quickly. He said to give him four minutes to have the bodies removed. Abby and McGee left with Ducky, Leaving Ziva and Tony in the hallway with the changing rooms. Tony changed quickly, and could hear Abby squeal as she jumped in the water as she jumped in the water. He stood in the hallway, leaning against the door to the women's room.

"I can't believe Gibbs is letting us go swimming. What mental trauma do you think induced this, Ziva?" He heard a sniff, before her answer.

"Yes, it is quite strange." Her voice sounded thick, almost as if she were crying. But this was Ziva he was talking to. Ziva didn't cry. Ever. End of story. He took a deep breath, feeling like he was about to jump off a cliff. A very high cliff. It's just Ziva, he told himself, you can ask her this. She won't hurt you. Badly.

"Ziva, are you alright." There, he told himself, I'm fine, see? But he heard the shuffle of feet and the swish of clothes. Heard her try to clear her throat quietly, so he wouldn't hear. "Ziva, you alright?" No answer for a few moments, and then her voice, as clear as ever.

"I am fine. Go away." He rolled his eyes. He must have just imagined Ziva's moment of weakness.

"Look, I'll just wait for you until you leave. Can't wait to see you in a bikini, sweetcheeks." He heard a sharp intake of breath.

"I will not be going swimming, Tony." The ice-cold Mossod exterior was back, her words sharp enough to cut granite

"And why is that?" He hit the door once "C'mon Ziva, we all want to see you looking pretty in a bikini. Besides, I've seen you in less." A shoe sailed over the top of the door and hit him in the head."You can't even see me, how the hell can you hit me?"

"You're voice." She was almost laughing now.

"You can hit me because you can hear my voice? Damn." Ninja chick had many talents.

"That and you are an easy target." He rolled his eyes.

"And I suppose no one has _ever_ landed a solid hit on the great miss David." He said, half teasing, half sarcastic. A tad bit serious.

"Don't you have to go swimming, Tony?" Her icy voice was back. He was so sick of this. How she had been so moody lately, he was going to go insane just trying to figure her out!

"I told you, I'm waiting for you."

"And I told you that I am not coming." And then he perked up a bit.

"So you aren't changing into a swimsuit." She made a noise, something like a growl, or that's the closest he could compare it to

"No, I am not changing into one of these things." He grinned. 'She will _kill_ you' his mind said. He told his mind to shut up.

"Alright then." He opened the door.


	3. Chapter 3

…

He stared at Ziva, who was clutching her green shirt to her chest, covering her whole front. He could see the straps of her bikini on her hips, and her legs were bare, as were her arms. All of the exposed skin that he could see was mottled with bruises.

"Holy sh…" He trailed off. "Ziva, what _happened_?" He reached a hand out to her and she backed up until she was against the wall.

"Go away!" She ordered him, her eyes wide with fear, her voice tinged with hysteria.

"Ziva, why are you so banged up?" He again tried to reach out to her. He didn't know what for- to hug her maybe, to make sure she knew she was safe, to reassure her. He didn't really know. But suddenly, her face went from fearful to stony, and she reached out with her right hand and twisted his arm in a _very _unnatural direction. "What the! Ziva, the hell was that for?" He rubbed his wrist and glared at her. "C'mon, what's wrong with a little hug…?" He finally noticed the marks on her upper arms. There was a mark on each upper arm shaped exactly like a hand- like someone had hurt her. "Ziva, who did this to you?" She didn't acknowledge him verbally. Instead she delivered a solid kick to his chest with her right foot. The blow pushed him out the door, which Ziva slammed behind him.

"Go. Away." Since he suspected she may kill him if he did otherwise, he pretended to. He took a couple steps away from the door, and then silently moved back to the door. He could hear here moving around in the dressing room, and was thinking about saying something when he heard Gibbs calling.

"DiNozzo, David, out here, now." DiNozzo silently ran to the halls doorway.

"Coming boss." He yelled through the door, as Ziva exited the changing room, straightening her clothes. They both entered the pool area together, Ziva shoved him into the doorframe.

"What was that for?" He hissed quietly enough that Gibbs couldn't hear.

"For being a little busy person."She whispered back just as quietly.

"It's busy _body,_ Ziva."

"David, DiNozzo, if you've finished your conversation? And Ziva, aren't you joining the others in the water?"

"You and ducky are not swimming either."

"Yeah, but I didn't ask what ducky and I are doing, did I?"

"No, I am not swimming." Gibbs paced around the edge of the pool, looking into the water.

"Well, I'm waiting to hear from everybody!" He said impatiently. Ziva raised her hand, her attitude somewhere between mocking and genuine. None of them could actually tell. Gibbs sighed.

"Yes, Ziva?" Ziva put her hand down and raised one eyebrow.

"_Why_ did you tell us to go swimming?

Yeah…chapter ends there, I couldn't really think of a good reason for Gibbs to let them swim, but it was vital to my story and your entertainment. If anyone thinks of anything, let me know.


	4. Chapter 4

The week continued, the pool case was solved, other cases same and went, and nothing all that memorable occurred. The only thing to even hint about the incident between Tony and Ziva was how she would give him the cold shoulder, ignoring him every chance she could, and on occasion, even pulling little jabs like she had I the doorway, shoving or jostling him. But not much, she wasn't that petty- only when he tried to get a rise out of her did she actually jab him. And their life continued without incident until Friday afternoon. Then they were in Abby's lab- more out of boredom than anything else. They were hiding from the stacks of paperwork that were quickly piling up on their desks, when Ziva asked Abby what kind of car she had.

"The kind that has wheels." Abby replied from where she was sitting on the floor, hugging her stuffed hippo. She was also hiding from her paperwork. She just took it a little bit more literally than the others did though. "Why, do you need a car this weekend?"

"I am moving to a new apartment, and I need a truck."

"Why don't you ask McGee?" Ziva laughed a bit.

"McGee doesn't own a truck." McGee looked up, his face seemed somewhere between irritated and shock. Probably because Ziva was right.

"Well what if I do own a truck?" Ziva smiled but rolled her eyes slightly.

"You don't." She said firmly. Tony perked up a bit; here was a chance to get back on Ziva's good side. He still wasn't convinced he'd done anything to deserve her wrath, but one could only go so long with an assassin pissed off at you before you became ever so slightly paranoid.

"I've got a SUV. Pretty big, I'm sure we could carry whatever it was you needed that truck for." Ziva looked pissed- she couldn't turn down the offer without drawing attention from the others to her little conflict with Tony, and she did need the car.

"Fine." She answered shortly, before heading for the lab's door.

"Where are you going?" Abby called after her.

"Paperwork." Ziva replied shortly.

"Hey, I'll pick you up at your place when?" Ziva stopped short of actually exiting the lab.

"What?"

"Me. Pick you up. When?" She came back, invading his personal space to glare at him.

"I'm borrowing your car. You are not driving me around."

"Hey, no DiNozzo, no car." Ziva glared at him for a few moments more. Then turned and left.

"My place. 0700 _sharp_."

"But tomorrow's Sunday!"

"I am well aware of that." Only after they had all gone home that evening did Tony remember that he never asked Ziva what she needed the car for. Knowing Ziva, he hoped that it didn't involve blood. Or bodies.

+++ Yes, this one is short, but it's more of a bridge chapter. Let me know what you think!+++


	5. Chapter 5

At _exactly_ 7:00 am, Tony stopped in front of Ziva's apartment. He had considered being slightly late on purpose simply to annoy her (honestly, one minute had never killed anyone.) but considering her recent behavior, he decided against it. Once he arrived, he parked as close to the front of the building as he could, ran up the steps and buzzed her apartment. The few other time's he had visited her, she had simply let him in. This time she asked who it was.

"Well who the hell else would it be at seven freaking o'clock on a Sunday morning." He received no answer but heard a buzzing, and opened the door. By the time he made it to her apartment, she was already standing in the door. Ziva glared at him from underneath the hem of the camouflaged bandana tied over her hair. She wore black cargo pants and a long sleeved green turtleneck. She looked like she had slept in the clothes, and just woken up. She had her backpack on, and a slim sleeping bag strapped to it. Behind her was some large piece of furniture that had been completely dismantled. She looked like she hadn't slept in a month.

"What is that?" He couldn't figure it out. She didn't even answer.

"I need to get it to my new apartment."

"You're moving?" Hadn't seen that one coming.

"I didn't ask you what you're doing. Although I was curious. I asked what that was." He pointed at the wooden pile of furniture.

"A bed." Tony smirked. Before he could make any comments, Ziva spoke.

"I had rented the smallest moving van they had, and the bed would not fit. I am not renting the van for another whole day simply to move the bed." Tony peered over her shoulder. The apartment was totally empty. Nothing in the kitchen, entry hall, or what he could see of the living room.

"Where's all your stuff? Don't tell me it's all gone." She rolled her eyes.

"As I said, everything was dismantled and packed yesterday." Tony raised an eyebrow.

"Where'd you sleep? Not on the floor in…that." He pointed at the sleeping bag.

"Why not? It is not that different from a bed."

"All your floors are wood!" She glared at him like he was an idiot.

"Really? I did not know that." Ziva was trying to look exasperated, but her lack of sleep made it hard for her to look like anything other than exhausted. He decided to take pity on her and not say anything in response to the sarcastic comment.

"Look, why don't you go get in the car and I'll carry this down." She managed to affectively glare at him this time.

"Because I can carry it." Tony walked past her into the apartment, grabbed the smallest amount of wood he thought she would accept, and shoved it her direction.

"Take this." She accepted the pieces of wood, making a quick face when it touched her skin. "What's wrong?" Before she could react, he had grabbed her wrist and pulled the sleeve back, revealing ring of bruises around her wrist. No doubt if she had been expecting him to do anything like that she would have snapped his arm long before he even touched her, but her lack of sleep and underestimating Tony's ability to read her let him get her arm. She yanked her arm back, and pulled her sleeve back down.

"I accidently pulled a bracelet to tight." Tony couldn't help but laugh a bit. She gripped his wrist tightly and he stopped.

"Ziva, you don't wear bracelets. Ever." She continued to glare at him."Okay, maybe sometimes. Not the point." Tony gripped her by her shoulders lightly, ignored her flinch and turned her around before pushing her out the door. "Go to the car. Oh, wait. One moment." He pulled the neck of her turtleneck down a bit, so he could see her shoulder. And then he gasped. Ziva had frozen in place. He could see down her shoulder a bit, bruises covered all the skin he could see on her back. Around her neck was a bruise that was still forming. Someone had tried to choke her, it looked like. And recently, since the bruise was still forming. He let go of the cloth, and the collar snapped back into place. "Okay, you can go now." She didn't acknowledge him, just walked into the elevator and closed the door. She didn't even look at him. Once she had left, tony walked into the apartment and past what was left of the bed. He wandered through the apartment. It was all empty, every room perfectly clean, totally immaculate. He checked the closets just to make sure she had gotten everything. Of course Ziva had gotten everything. He didn't doubt that. But he needed time to think. He was so confused. H couldn't think of anybody who would hurt Ziva, but it had to be someone very close to her. She wouldn't allow anyone whom she didn't care about to so much as lay a hand on her. He opened the last door he hadn't looked in, an out of the way closet at the back of her apartment. He stopped cold at what he saw there.


	6. Chapter 6

The closet had obviously been scrubbed well, but there were still blood stains on the walls. Light pink coloring was everywhere, in erratic patterns along the walls. He took a deep breath. There was nothing to prove it was Ziva's blood. It could be someone else's. But he slammed the door shut and ran before he could really look at the small closet or think. The closet had been big enough for a person to lie down in. Was Ziva keeping someone in there? Tony stopped walking. How could he think that? This wasn't a monster he was talking about! This was Ziva, and someone was hurting her. He took a deep breath, walked back to the apartment and made 2 trips to drag what was left of the bed to the elevator.

He got into the elevator, and then dragged the bed pieces behind him. He took two trips from the elevator to the trunk of his car in a daze. Ziva sat up front, staring out the windshield, not saying a word. He got into the driver's seat and sat there for a moment.

"Do you want to talk about it?" She didn't move. Didn't do anything except say one word,

"Go." He started the car, took it out of park, and sat there. "Well, are you going to go!?" She snapped angrily

"Where am I going?" Ziva sighed and rubbed her forehead.

"The Northwestern Apartment Complex. Apartment number 25." She leaned back and closed her eyes. He wasn't sure whether she was asleep or just ignoring him, but he let her be. He managed to find the apartment complex in about 15 minutes. He stopped the car outside of the building, about 10 feet from the front door of apartment 25. By now Ziva was obviously asleep. He got out, and tried the door of the apartment. It was unlocked. He stuck his head in the front door, and identified that it was Ziva's. The boxes stacked in the front doorway were overflowing with what little she had brought from Israel and bought since she had moved to the U.S. He went back, unbuckled her, and carried her into the house. He walked through until he found a couch, and gently placed Ziva on it. He went back and grabbed the bed pieces, taking 3 trips to carry it in. And he then spent almost six hours putting her new apartment together. It had a similar layout to her old apartment, so he put it together much like her old one. He needed some time to think, but simply sitting still wasn't going to help him. After he was about as finished as he could be without knowing where she wanted everything, he went to go check on her. His thought process had brought him nothing but more questions. She was curled up like a cat on the couch, her body forming a little ball that took up only one couch cushion. He sat down next to her.

"Ziva, c'mon, wake up." She moaned and turned so that she was looking at the couch, her back to the room.

"No, leave me alone please." He almost smiled. Of course she would use perfect English and be polite, even while half asleep.

"Ziva, up and at 'em." He put a hand on her shoulder and shook her a bit. "Wakey wakey."

"No, no!" She turned a bit more away from him. He was about to say something else when she spoke again. "Stop it!" She turned even more away, trying to burrow into the seam between the couch and the cushions. "Go away, please! Leave me alone!" She was almost yelling now, Tossing and turning as she tried to get farther and farther away from him. He grabbed both her shoulders and shook her, even though he knew she must be sore.

"Ziva, wake up!" Ziva continued to toss and turn. She yelled again, and finally he gave her a hard shake. "Ziva! Wake. Up."

"No, don't hurt-" She sat upright, breathing hard and covered in sweat. She couldn't focus her eyes on him, they were darting around rapidly. He shook her lightly again.

"Ziva, c'mon look at me." She finally focused her eyes on his face.

"Is he here!?"

"Who?" Tony tried to get her talk to him, but she must have been dizzy or something, she was moving back and forth, her eyes glazing over. Suddenly, she jumped up and ran to the master bathroom. He ran after her and found her leaning over the toilet, throwing up. He leaned down and pulled her hair back. She flinched at his touch at first, but her attention was otherwise diverted as she emptied the contents of her stomach. (Which, he noted, was not much.) And then she just started crying. Nothing on the scale of normal crying. She just sat there, not making a sound, tears streaming down her face. He thought that was worse. People should make noise when they cried. He moved her back from the toilet, so that they had more room. He leaned his back against the wall and stretched his legs out a bit. He tried to pull her down next to him. She resisted at first, fussing like a child. But then she relented. She simply collapsed, like a limp ragdoll. She simply froze once she was next to him. She didn't move, didn't speak. He pushed her away a bit so that he could see her face. She was looking at the ground, not moving at all. He put two fingers under her chin, moved her face up so she was looking into his eyes. She looked dead. For the first time, he was genuinely worried. Until now, she could have simply told him she was working on a case for Mossod on the side. But the look on her face didn't come from working a case. It came from someone who was ready to give up. He took his hand off her shoulder and let her face lean down again. She crumpled into him. Leaning against him for all support. They sat like that for a long time. He didn't know how long, but when he leaned back a bit to see her face, she was asleep again. He lifted her up, and this time laid her down on her bed. He tucked her in, doing his best not to wake her. He made sure to get her shoes and take off her jacket. And then he went to the kitchen and made coffee. He looked at the clock. It was only 4:00 in the afternoon. He sat at the kitchen table, and made some calls. First to Abby. Then McGee. Gibbs was last. He didn't want him to order him not to call the others, that was why he'd called them first. And just as he knew he would, Gibbs ordered them to meet. He offered his apartment, and Gibbs took the offer. The four of them were going to meet in25 minutes. He grabbed his keys, and looked in on Ziva. He shook her shoulder slightly. She muttered something and rolled over.

"Ziva." She muttered again "Ziva, I have to go now." She muttered again. "Ziva, where am I going?"

"AWAY!" At least she was back to a semblance of her normal self. He left. He wanted to stay with her, but the faster the team was briefed, the faster they could figure this out. He saw two sets of keys on the counter marked with the number 25. He grabbed a set and locked the door behind him.


	7. Chapter 7

Tony opened his apartment door to find five people gathered around the island in his kitchen. Ducky, Jimmy, Abby, and McGee were all waiting in tense silence. He should have known Gibbs would call Ducky and Jimmy. Gibbs was using his coffee machine. Go figure. Tony stood at the island between Ducky and Abby; they all waited silently for Gibbs. Finally, he came to the island. Set his cup of coffee down silently leaned against the island.

"Well do you expect me to _guess_ what's going on!?" Tony gave them the run through, giving as many details as he could. They stood there for a few moments after he was done.

"What purpose would torturing Ziva serve? We all know she would never reveal any information- she'd die first!" Ducky exclaimed. Tony shook his head.

"No, she would do that, but she wouldn't…show this weakness. Not over torture for information. This is personnel, whatever it is…it's targeting her, whoever, whatever this is, the target is her." Gibbs glared at him until he shut up.

"We aren't theorizing yet. What we are doing is going to that apartment and look at that closet." Tony felt stupid for not thinking of it first. Abby nodded.

"I'm coming to." She declared. Ducky nodded.

"Well, of course we all are." Gibbs paused for a moment after ducky said that.

"Ducky?" Ducky turned to Gibbs as he tried to put his jacket on.

"Yes Jethro?" Gibbs looked like he always did with a case-which seemed a bit impersonal to him, but he wasn't about to say that.

"Can you think of anything that could give Ziva those bruises?" Ducky sighed. He obviously didn't want to think about this. But he did think it over before he answered.

"It sounds like she was beaten. Fairly badly too. From what Tony described about the marks on her, I'd say she was choked, beaten, possibly with a blunt object, and held down, since she had hand-shaped marks on her arms." They all paused at once.

"Oh my freaking…" Abby gasped

"You don't think this guy ra-" Tony was cut off quickly by a head slap from Gibbs as they all filed out the door to their various transportations to go to Ziva's old apartment.

"Who says it's a man, Tony?"


	8. Chapter 8

Everyone stood outside the closet, except Gibbs and Ducky, who were inside the closet examining the blood stains.

"Well, whoever this blood belongs to, the point was to cause pain." They all looked at him in expectation- you don't just say something like that and stop. "Well, see here," He pointed at some of the marks on the wall that were smeared. "Wherever the wound was, that area was rubbed against the wall, to inflict maximum damage and pain. The rubbing would have opened the wounds wider by grinding away the raw edges of the wound; the pain would have been quite bad, especially if…" He trailed off as everyone stared at him in horror. "I am sorry about that; I do get carried away at crime scenes sometimes." They all nodded at once. Just a _little_ carried away. Gibbs shoved past them, readjusting his hat as he went.

"Search the rest of the premises. Talk to her neighbors. Find _something_."Gibbs went to search the two bedrooms. Tony took the kitchen, Abby and McGee searched the rest of the apartment. It was about two minutes before Gibbs called them all into the master bathroom.

"DiNozzo, you said that you were in here with Ziva this morning?" Tony nodded. "Did you see this?" Gibbs pulled the shower curtain to the right a bit, revealing hole in the wall.

"Yeah, no I didn't see that." Gibbs pulled the curtain even farther, before he finally just yanked the curtain off completely. There was an arc of similar holes, all obviously from the same knife, along the wall. "Well, I think we need some photos." He looked expectantly at Tony.

"Well I didn't bring a camera!!" Gibbs rolled his eyes to McGee.

"Uh, I have this little digital one-" Gibbs grabbed it before he could say anything else. He snapped a couple of pictures and then called to Ducky.

"Any theories?" Ducky examined the wall closely for a few moments. Then he turned to Gibbs

"Jethro, do you recognize this blade? It looks like a-"

"Mossod, standard issue, I see it Duck." Ducky looked at him for a moment. Then turned back to the wall.

"Whomever was wielding this knife was trying to scare someone. See, they would have pushed someone up against the wall. Holding them by the shoulder maybe." He pushed his fist forward into the wall. "Jethro, look at this." He called out suddenly. Gibbs, who had been looking at the photos on the camera, came over.

"Looks like someone's fist made a bit of a dent in the wall. A big dent." Ducky nodded.

"Indeed. This dent is far too large to belong to young miss David."

"So does that mean she was the being pushed?" McGee asked.

"Well, yes McGee, that's what I was going to say once people stopped interrupting me."

"And the holes in the wall?" Gibbs questioned.

"Well I'd say it was a kind of mental or emotional torture." They all looked at him questioningly. " See, they would hold her against the wall, and stab around her head. The faster they would be, the more scared she'd be that they'd miss." Everyone simply stayed still for a few moments, before Gibbs yelled at them.

"Are you just going to stand there!? We have a whole apartment to search!" The team sprang into action. After the display in the bathroom, they were more determined than ever to find out what was wrong with Ziva.


	9. Chapter 9

Tony was still examining the kitchen when Gibbs came in.

"Have you looked over everything?" Tony indicated the empty kitchen.

"I think I've seen it all." He said with a hint of sarcasm.

"Under the fridge?"

"Yes Boss."

"In the cupboards?" Tony was half way through a nod before he held up a finger.

"One moment." He went to the fridge and opened the cupboards above it. He came back over to Gibbs again. "Yeah I got nothing." Gibbs nodded and turned to leave the kitchen."Hey boss!" Gibbs turned. "Could…can I go back, to check on Ziva?"

"She'll wonder why you're back there at about 7:15 on a Sunday." Tony frowned at this sudden bout of logic in their recently erratic and unusual events.

"I'll give her some kind of bull." He said firmly. Gibbs had to let him go. Hell, if he said no he'd go anyway. Thus far they'd been doing this under the table, so he wouldn't be breaking any rules. Gibbs shook his head and sighed. He waived Tony away.

"Go, go." Tony nodded and left at almost a run. Gibbs sighed and turned around again, only to run into Ducky. Literally. "And what did you find, Ducky?" He said flatly. He _wanted_ to go and yell at Ziva until she spilled everything. He knew she'd more likely kill them first. He'd have to settle for information from Ducky.

"Well, whoever is doing this enjoys seeing Ziva suffer." Ducky, ever the blunt one.

"Do I need to ask?" Ducky held up papers, they had been rolled up tightly and still mostly retained their shape. "Tightly rolled paper? This is the answer to the mysterious goings on?" Ducky unrolled the papers and held them up so Gibbs could see them. Gibbs gave something between a sigh and a gasp. He didn't want so show that he was surprised. "Is…is that Ziva?" The quick stutter on the first word was all that gave away that Gibbs was unsettled by the two photos before him. One showed Ziva's back, her head being force to turn so it was also looking at the camera. The hand twisting her head was visible in the upper right corner. Every inch of her was bloodied and beaten. Her face was still marked, though substantially less. He couldn't believe she'd come to work like this. They only had one day off a week and she hadn't taken any leave recently. He couldn't believe he'd missed this.

Ducky moved the other picture to the front. This one showed the bottom of Ziva's face, her lip split, and her shoulders. On her collarbone were the letters SW, burned into the skin.

"Is that…"

"It's a brand, Jethro. Fairly basic, most likely a thick wire twisted into the desired shape and heated, before being pressed into the skin." Gibbs sighed, and grabbed the photos. He rolled them up and put them in an inner pocket.

"Where did you find them?" He asked Ducky.

"Behind the mirror, in an envelope." Ducky held up the envelope in the other hand. Gibbs was happy to notice that he had been wearing gloves this whole time. Gibbs nodded. He headed for the door.

"Let's go! I want to check on Ziva and Tony before we turn in for the ni- uff!" Gibbs let out a breath at the impact of running into McGee. "I can see why Ziva moved out; this place isn't big enough for hamsters!" He walked out the front door. McGee glanced at Abby and Ducky, who had gathered in the entry hall.

"Hamsters?" McGee asked. Ducky shook his head.

"Don't try to understand him Timothy. I thought you would know that by now."


	10. Chapter 10

"Knock knock." Tony called. He stuck the extra key that he'd taken earlier into the door, and let himself in quietly. He could hear water running in the master bathroom. He quietly tip toed through and secured the apartment, locking all the windows and the sliding back door. Then he went into the master bedroom. The door to the bathroom was closed, and he could hear the shower still going. On Ziva's bed were two stacks of neatly folded clothes- what she had worn earlier today, and running clothes with sneakers, both set at the foot of the bed, which smelled like she had just run. Between the bed and the wall next to the bathroom door was a table, on which was a long sleeved shirt, sweatpants, and underwear. He could hear Ziva singing in the shower. He smiled. She was good. Then the water stopped and he panicked. Since he wasn't keen on being killed, he left the master bedroom and went to the kitchen. Seeing no dishes on the counter and, after a quick look, none in the dishwasher, he decided to make some food. He scrounged around in the cupboards until he found a box of pasta. He took a few more moments to find a pot large enough to make food for two. The crashing that occurred when he pulled the pot out scared Ziva.

"Who's there!?" She snapped. He could picture crouched behind the bed or table, gun ready and knife within reach.

"Honey, I'm home!" There was a second before she answered.

"Tony!?" She sounded surprised. And definitely NOT happy. He flinched a bit at her tone. It was stony cold.

"The one and only." He replied, filling the pot with warm water to boil. "I'm making us dinner." He called loudly over the water. He could have sworn he heard her growl.

"Why the hell are you here!? It is Sunday night! At almost eight 'o clock!" He grinned. She was back to her lively self.

"As I said, dinner." He heard her come storming through the apartment, muttering what were no doubt Hebrew curse words. By the time she had entered the kitchen, he had just put the pasta on to boil. He turned around. Mostly to make sure he didn't get stabbed in the back. He preferred to face his death head on. But what he saw made him take a step back in shock.

"Ziva, I was just here about two hours ago!!" Ziva self consciously touched her deep purple cheek bone.

"It's not nearly as bad as it looks." He looked at her hard, maintaining eye contact. Finally, he sighed.

"Fall running again?" He questioned sarcastically. She nodded and pushed past him.

"What are you doing?" She questioned looking in the pot of pasta.

"Uh, cooking. What else would I be doing in the kitchen?" She walked to the cupboards and pulled out two plates, two wine glasses, two forks, and two knives. "You're not planning on stabbing me, are you?" She smirked at him, flinched, and rubbed her bruised cheek. Tony turned to grab a dishtowel and grabbed a fistful of ice from the freezer. He handed her the ice pack. She went to put it on the counter, but he grabbed it and held it to her face. "Keep it on. It doesn't keep the color away, but it can take the swelling down and numb it a bit." He gently pushed on her back, mindful of her bruises, and steered her towards the table and pushed her down in one of the chairs.

"How would you know what would bring down swelling?" He grinned and started setting the table.

"I've had my fair share of facial bruises." Ziva laughed.

"I have rarely seen you with your face bruised. Twice, tops." Tony pulled a bottle of wine out of the fridge and poured two glasses. "And who said you could drink my wine!?" Ziva snapped. Tony rolled his eyes.

"I don't care what you say about your wine, I'm drinking some of it if I have to spend the night with you. Unless you have beer?" Ziva's head snapped up to glare at him.

"What do you mean 'staying here tonight'!?" Tony was debating whether he should run for his life, or tell her that Gibbs said he should be here. Instead he simply shrugged and pulled the boiling pot off the stove. He found a wooden spoon in a drawer and put some on her plate.

"Eat up." She glared at him. He grinned. "I'm not saying anything until you eat everything on your plate. Then we talk. About everything." He said the last sentence more threateningly, as he set her plate down. She turned, about ready to argue, but Tony held the plate in her face, and after one smell she simply nodded. He felt a little guilty for not thinking of feeding her earlier- she'd probably only eaten breakfast today, if that. Tony turned to look at Ziva, to ask her if he'd given her enough to eat. She'd already finished the plate.

"Want more?" He asked her. She shook her head sleepily and tried to get up. He ended up giving her a hand. Once she was up, she shoved him away and walked to her room, to collapse on the bed. That worried him- she was getting exhausted so quickly lately. Instead, he tucked her in for the second time that day and went to do the dishes. If he was going to be here all night, he might as well do some of the chores. And sleep, he thought, as he yawned. Once he was done, he decided to crash on the couch after he'd checked on her.

He went into Ziva's room to check on her one last time before going to sleep. She was sleeping on her side, back to the wall. She wasn't smiling, but she looked peaceful and at rest. He sat on the edge of the bed and brushed hair away from her bruised cheek. He fought the sudden impulse to kiss her and make it better, the way his mother had when he was little. He kneeled on the ground and rested his hands on his folded arms, which were resting on the bed. He stared at her face. She must have been truly exhausted to not have woken up by now. Those were his last thoughts before he drifted off to sleep.


	11. Chapter 11

Tony awoke to someone yelling. He sat up suddenly and pushed the covers aside. He paused for a second to consider that, and realized he was on Ziva's couch, covered by blankets. How she did that was beyond him, but he'd ask her one day. He ran to Ziva's room, expecting an intruder. Instead, he found her thrashing around, yelling at the top of her lungs, having a nightmare again. He went over and tried to shake her awake. She was yelling again.

"Stop it! Stop!" She screamed so loud that Tony was afraid that the owner of the apartments may kick her out. He shook her hard.

"Ziva, wake up!" He hissed and shook her by the shoulders.

"I promise!" Ziva had quieted down now, no long screaming, no longer moving as much. She lapsed into the silent sobbing that he so hated. She continued whimpering. "Please, I promise." She sounded so broken. He was torn between waking her up, or letting her sleep and finding out more. He made up his mind, and was about to wake her when she whispered again. "No, please, don't hurt them...I will do whatever you say. Anything. Just do not hurt them. They are my only family…" Feeling like he was seriously invading her privacy, he finally shook her awake.

"Ziva, wake up!" She finally did, sitting up lightning fast, gasping for breath. He had a serious case of déjà vu. He hoped she didn't throw up again. She breathed deeply for a few moments, then closed her eyes. She leaned back and rested the back of her head against the wall. She sat back up right away.

"Ow." She rubbed the back of her head. She finally noticed him standing by the bed. She glared at him. "_You_ are supposed to be asleep on the couch." She growled at him. He shrugged and kneeled next to her on the bed. He moved her hands and tried to touch the back of her head. She resisted at first, but then gave in. He felt a bump the size of an egg on the back of her head.

"How did you get this?" He questioned. She grinned.

"As I said, I fell while running." Now Tony smirked. Ziva felt uneasy.

"On _both_ sides of your head?" Ziva's smile vanished. She looked at the clock.

"I'm going out to run. I need to leave for work in an hour and a half." Tony bared her way.

"A, you are not getting up. B…why do you need to leave so freaking _early!?"_ Ziva rolled her eyes and tried to get up again. He blocked her way again.

"I take the bus, Tony." Tony rolled his eyes.

"In case you've forgotten, I'm here." She nodded and rolled her eyes at the same time. Tony rolled his own eyes and pushed her lightly back down into bed. He realized it would be pointless to try and convince her to stay home today, plus, she was probably safer at the Nave Base than she was here.

"Sleep." He commanded. "I'll wake you up in about an hour with breakfast ready. Ziva struggled to get up again. He relented.

"You can get up and read or something, but no physical activity. Unless you want to-" He was cut off by her shoving a pillow in his face. He moved the pillow aside. "I was going to say, 'unless you want to help me cook.'" She gave him a long hard look, then got out of bed.

"You can shower first- I will make breakfast."She said firmly. He debated whether she would make a break for it while he was in the shower, but decided it was worth the risk. He couldn't go to work like this. Besides, it wasn't like there was a lot of places she would go. Just in case, he grabbed her running shoes when he walked to the bathroom.

"These are coming with me. No escaping!" He called over his shoulder. She nodded. "And don't you do anything stupid."

"I never do anything I think is stupid." She got up and moved out of the room.

"Hey, where are you going?"

"As I said, I will cook breakfast this morning." He grinned

"It's like playing house!" She threw the pillow at him as she walked out of the room.


	12. Chapter 12

Tony stepped out of the shower to find a pile of clothes on the counter next to a towel. The clothes were much like what her wore every day, and in his size. He put them on

Tony came out of the bathroom to discover Ziva dressed, her hair still damp but done up in a ponytail.

"When did you shower?" He questioned curiously. She shrugged. "And what's with the clothes?" He indicated what he was wearing.

"I used the smaller shower in the other bathroom. And I have an outfit for everybody, even Abby, just in case. They taught us to be prepared in Mossod" He considered saying he would have taken the smaller bathroom, and then realized it would do no good. He also considered commenting on the clothes and how she knew his exact size for everything, but decided against it. He glanced at Ziva. She even had her shoes on already! Her backpack was by the front door ready to, breakfast was on the table. Waffles.

"How did you know I liked waffles?" He asked. She rolled her eyes.

"I did not make them because you like them. I did not know that. I made them because they are the only breakfast I can make besides cold cereal, and after sleeping on my couch and setting up my apartment yesterday, I decided to do something in return."

"You forgot that I made dinner last night." He pointed out. She grabbed the plate away.

"Do you want these waffles or not?" She questioned. Tony opened his eyes wide and gave her a sad face.

"I'll be good I promise." He said in a childish voice. A shadow crossed Ziva's face before she smirked again.

"It is alright Tony, really, I could easily eat all these myself." She teased. They continued with the pointless banter through breakfast and doing the dishes together. They headed to leave about ten minutes earlier than they needed to- when he questioned Ziva about it, she said she wanted to stop for coffee. He hoped she didn't turn out as coffee dependant as Gibbs was one day. Ziva tried to put her backpack on, and visibly flinched when it made contact with her back. Tony tried to grab it from her. She insisted she carry it, and held the heavy bag by its handle instead.

"I don't get why you're so stubborn." He muttered as she walked towards the car, while he locked up the apartment. He noticed, as they drove to the coffee shop, that Ziva leaned forward in her seat, not letting her back touch the seat. Tony opened his glove compartment and handed her a bottle of Tylenol.

"It might not get rid of a lot of pain, but it should work some. You can't sit like that all day." Ziva hesitated a second, then shook two pills into her hand and dry swallowed as they pulled into the drive through of the coffee shop. He flinched. "Those would have tasted a lot better with coffee." He muttered. She leaned across him to order.

"Hola, Angelina." She greeted the women at the window. She ordered in Spanish and then turned to Tony. "What would you like?" Tony was about to say when Angelina cut in

"I can understand English, Ziva, especially the English of such a good looking man." Ziva sat back into her seat and made a face. Angeline laughed and then called out Ziva's order, before taking Tony's and calling it out as well. "I thought you said a man would be to much trouble to maintain, Ziva?" Questioned Angelina. Ziva grinned and nodded.

"He is not 'my man' Angeline, Gibbs ordered him to take care of me." Tony sat back a bit.

"How did you know that!?" He questioned her as she took their coffee from Angelina. He pulled away from the window. Ziva shrugged.

"People do not spend more time than is necessary around me." She said emotionlessly. Tony Stopped the car in the middle of the parking lot, earning quite a few horns to go off at him before they went around him. He turned to Ziva.

"Don't you _ever_ think that!" He ordered her sternly. She looked a bit surprised, but nodded her head. Tony turned back to the windshield and started driving again. Ziva leaned back into her seat slowly. She smiled when she realized she couldn't feel the pain in her back. She glanced at tony.

"Tony?" She asked as they pulled past the security checkpoint and entered the Naval Base.

"Yeah?" He asked, as he tried to find a parking space. His normal one was taken.

"Just…thanks." He looked at her for a moment, confused.

"For what?" he questioned. He'd just helped her out because he needed it. Even if Gibbs hadn't ordered him to take care of her, he would have. She was a member of his team- he hated to think of her as Kate's replacement, but in a way, she had filled her role somewhat, and he did care for Ziva herself. H didn't like that anyone was hurting her. Ziva smiled as she got out of the car with her backpack.

"Exactly." She said with a smile as she walked away.

+++Unfortunately, my school is back to its normal schedule…which means that I will have more homework, and less time to type chapters…so they will be coming slower than normal. Sorry!+++


	13. Chapter 13

+++I must apologize for not updating in so long! I'll try to update sooner from now on! +++

By about 0830, the office was baking. A sudden heat wave had descended upon the city, and there was very little relief from the stifling temperatures. Despite that, Ziva had yet to take off her long sleeved sweater, or put up her hair, which was hiding the bruise on her neck. She was also becoming quite paranoid, since everyone seemed to be whispering behind her back. Finally, at about 0900, Gibbs and Ducky came down from the meeting they'd been in with the director. Both looked exhausted.

"What the matter boss?" McGee questioned Gibbs. Gibbs gave him a look that would have killed lesser men.

"Why on Earth would there be something _wrong_ McGee? Is it the fact that we have _**no**_ chance of figuring out this case," Gibbs waved a file in the air they had never seen before. What case? "Or could it be the fact that we have to work with the FBI on this case? Or maybe it's the problems within out team that's causing stress."

He glared daggers at Ziva when he said that, but she was still typing away at her computer. Tony and McGee felt bad. It was obvious that Gibbs and Ducky had stayed up late, either at Ziva's apartment, or worrying about her. Gibbs rubbed the bridge of his nose with his hand, a habit Tony had noticed last night- had he just started doing that? Suddenly, Ziva started coughing. Tony'd also noticed that she was coughing a bit lately, but chalked it up to some allergy she would never admit to having, or something like that. This time, though, when she pulled her hands away from her mouth, she looked at them, and then jumped up. She quickly walked to the ladies room and disappeared in it. Both Gibbs and Tony headed for the door, and Gibbs only realized that Tony was behind him when they both reached for the door handle. "Back off, DiNozzo." Gibbs growled warningly. Tony shook his head.

"Boss, let me talk to her, please?" He was prepared to beg for this- he wanted it to be him who talked to Ziva. He wanted to comfort her, to help her. He didn't know why, but…pulling her hair back when she'd been sick, making her dinner, waking her up from her nightmares, he was becoming more and more protective of her the farther into this he got, whatever 'this' may be. Gibbs paused a moment, then nodded. Tony had no doubt that he would stand outside the door, listening in the whole time, but he wasn't going to complain. Tony pulled the door to the bathroom open.

+++sorry it's so short! It's more of a bridge chapter…anyways, I have a basic outline for this story, but I'm still having a bit of trouble adding details, so if anyone would like to suggest anything, I will gladly consider suggestions!+++


	14. Chapter 14

He pulled open the bathroom door and walked in. Ziva was leaning over a sink; her hands were gripping the sides of it, leaving bloodied smears, as she coughed blood into the basin. He pulled her hair back from her face. She shot him a grateful glance in the mirror before her body was shaken by another coughing fit. He partially held her upright as her face twisted in pain from the coughs. He was disturbed to notice her distinct lack of body fat- he hadn't realized how much weight she was losing in these past weeks. Finally, after a few moments, she stopped coughing. She tried to reach a paper towel, but her hands were shaking so badly she couldn't grip it right. He grabbed her wrist and held her bloody hand back over the sink, reaching for the paper towel himself.

"So now you're coughing up blood." He observed. She gave a harsh laugh, but that only made her cough again, more blood speckling her lips as she hacked for a few moments. She finally stopped, and tried to wipe her mouth on her sleeve. He again grabbed her wrist again, to stop her from getting the blood from her face on her clothes. He stood behind her and turned the water on, holding her shaking and bloody hands under stream of water. He dried her hands, then wet a paper towel and tried to wipe her face. She turned and snatched the towel from him.

"I can do it myself!" She snapped angrily. Her face was bright red, and he wasn't sure if that was from the heat or the coughing. He saw that she was sweating, her forehead damp.

"If you take off that jacket, you'll be much cooler." He commented as she continued to clean blood from her face. She nodded.

"I know." She said the word breathily, her throat still raw from the coughing fits. He'd been hoping that she would have some sarcastic barb to throw back at him about the obviousness of his comment- it would have shown she wasn't as bad as she looked. Tony reached for the button at her throat, and she pulled back. "No." She said firmly, despite her voice sounding so light. He paused.

"I'll make you a deal." He said just as firmly. "Either tell me what's going on, or take off your jacket so you can cool down, at least while we're in the bathroom." She glared up at him, and he reached to brush some fly away hairs from her face. She stepped back again and pushed the wayward hairs roughly out of her face.

"And if I refuse?" She questioned him, her voice slowly returning to normal. He smirked a bit.

"Then I have Gibbs take you to a doctor to get every injury you have looked at." She now looked _extremely_ pissed.

"That is cheap." She muttered. "But I…" She looked at the ground. "Tony, I cannot do either of those things!" she exclaimed, looking him in the face again. He raised an eyebrow.

"Well, I know you probably won't tell me a thing, so just take off the jacket so you don't kill yourself in this heat." He gave her a small smile, hoping to encourage her. She shook her head.

"Tony, the shirt I am wearing…it is very…" She searched for the English word. "Low cut. Very low cut." She looked up at him again, hoping this excuse would get her out of Tony's demands. She had no doubt that Gibbs was capable of forcing her to go to a doctor, but she could not take the jacket off. Tony raised his right hand, the way people do in court

"I won't stare or anything. I won't even make any comments. I swear." He put his hand down. Ziva paused a moment, and then glared at him full in the face.

"No comments. At all." She said firmly. He nodded. She unbuttoned the jacket, and gently slid it off each arm, so as not to aggravate her injuries. He gasped. The long-sleeved shirt wasn't nearly as low-cut as she'd made it out to be- but it still showed her collarbone. He stared at the burn, shaped like and S and an H.

"Ziva, what-" He hand jerked up to cover the burn, but she was careful to make sure she never actually touched the burned flesh.

"You promised no comments." She cut in. He couldn't tear his gaze from the spot where the burn was. He felt sick to his stomach. He'd seen his fair share of burns when he'd worked in Baltimore PD, and he could tell the difference between burns that were and weren't inflicted for torture. (Seriously, people were burned for the strangest reasons besides torture.) And this burn was meant to be used for torture. He gently grabbed Ziva's wrist and pulled her arm away from the burn. He leaned forward a bit to look closely, and Ziva pushed him. "A little too far into my space bubble." He grinned.

"It's 'invading my bubble of personal space' Ziva." He still couldn't take his eyes off the burn. He reached out to touch her collar bone, and she, surprisingly, didn't step away. He didn't notice that it was because the orange-brown wall was against her back. But she didn't dart away either. He lightly traced around the seared flesh, he felt her tense, and saw fear in her eyes. He drew his hand back. "If I scared you, why didn't you move?" He questioned her. The flash of fear in her eyes turned to anger.

"I was not afraid." He grinned the tinniest bit and reached toward her again. She tensed up and tried to lean away, only to hit her head on the wall. Her eyes watered a bit, and she unconsciously tried to cover the bump before forcing herself to pull her hand back down. He lightly put his hand over the head injury, and pulled her into a light hug, careful not to hurt her. She stiffened up again, her muscles tensing.

"Are you sure you're not afraid of something?" He whispered in her ear. She didn't move at all. Then she tried to pull away.

"Leave me alone. If they see me with you…" She didn't finish the sentence, but he noticed that she'd whispered it. No doubt she knew that Gibbs had been outside the door at the beginning of the conversation. He was probably still out there now. He pulled her back.

"Who?" He hissed back at her. She was starting to struggle against his grip, and he held her tighter. "Ziva, tell me!" He demanded quietly. She shook her head and tried to pull away again. She was starting to shake again. Her hair had fallen in her eyes. When he reached for it, he was surprised to see her flinch away. She was genuinely scared. He put two fingers under her chin and forced her to face him. She was still shaking, and she looked so scared. This was a look he'd never imagined he would see on her. He felt and overwhelming urge to protect her, to fight off whatever was hurting her. He pushed that part of him down. He told himself that he could be emotional later. Ziva kept trying to pull away from him, but he wasn't letting her go, and that was making her more agitated. She was starting to panic.

"Let me go!!" She demanded. He shook his head.

"Ziva, look at me." Ziva shook her head fiercely and tried to pull away again. He knew it must be hurting her, him holding her wrist so tightly. But she was so hysterical he was afraid that if he let her go she would hurt herself. She had the sense to not scream or yell, at least, but he was still worried. She was beginning to thrash around, and her eyes were wide, her breathing fast. He pulled her into a tighter hug, mindful that he was probably hurting her, but more worried that she would hurt herself more. While she thrashed about and hissed Hebrew words at him would bet were highly offensive, he carefully maneuvered so that he could lean against the wall. He slid down into a sitting position, pulling her with him. He sat behind her, crossing her arms and holding her tight while pushing her against his chest so she couldn't thrash around. She slowly calmed to down. He realized that she hadn't made a sound through all of it. He hated it when she was quiet like this. Her breathing slowed, bit by bit, and she stopped moving around, though she was still shaking.

"Tony…I am sorry; I do not know what came over me." He didn't let her go. Instead, he buried his face in her hair- she smelled nice, like clean laundry and flowers. It reminded him of spring. He immediately scolded himself for thinking like that. She squirmed away. "Tony, I am sorry for my…" she paused for a moment. "Heat down? I am sorry for my heat down." Tony smiled

"I think you mean 'melt down. Zi." He expected her to either laugh at the nickname or threaten him with a horrible death. He _hadn't _expected her to have her knife against his throat within a second of the syllable leaving his mouth.

"Do not _ever_ call me that." She hissed at him before sheathing her knife in its proper place at her back. Tony looked at her questioningly, then nodded and stood. He pulled her close again, ignoring her flinch.

"Gibbs is right outside the door." He said quietly. She nodded. She left first, pausing to make eye contact with Gibbs and nod before continuing to her desk. She sat and continued the paperwork that was stacked there. Gibbs raised a questioning eyebrow at him, and he shook his head. Both returned to their desks- nobody said a thing until they left. Then all hell broke loose.

+++As I said last time, I'm totally open to suggestions. I'm saying this again cause no one sent any in…seriously guys (and girls) I don't care how stupid you think it is, it could totally be and inspiration to me. Send those ideas! Anyways, thanks for reading, and please review! +++


	15. Chapter 15

"He is _**NOT**_ coming home with me again!" Ziva yelled at Gibbs. The two of them had been yelling at one another for the past five minutes or so, and the sound was beginning to grate McGee and DiNozzo's nerves. The two special agents watching the argument were soon joined by a worried palmer, an amused Ducky, and a very stressed out Abby, who'd been on their way out. After about another three minutes, the yelling stopped. Not because an agreement had been reached, or because Gibbs had won, (Cause even Ziva had to have trouble winning a shouting match with Gibbs.) but because Director Vance was leaning over the railing staring at them. Glaring daggers at them, actually.

"I came down to find special agent David so that she could speak with the Director of Mossod, but if she's too busy arguing with her boss, I can tell him to call back." Vance said sarcastically. Ziva bolted up the stairs- Tony, Gibbs and Ducky noticed she was limping. Within moments, the bullpen had gone from a chaotic, noisy, mess to a chaotic, normal-volume mess. Tony sighed and leaned back in his chair.

"Honestly boss, this protection detail isn't doing much- we don't know anything more than we did a week ago! Or even a day ago!" Tony exclaimed. He noticed Abby bite her lip.

"Whatcha go Abs?" Gibbs questioned her. Abby reached into her coffin-shaped purse and pulled out an envelope, exactly like the one taped to her door only about a week ago.

"They've been coming all week; Ziva asked me to give them to her on the sly. This is the first one that I've gotten since Tony told us what was going on!" She defended herself when Gibbs shot her his patent 'Gibbs glare'. Gibbs simply held out his hand to Abby, and she placed the envelope in his open hand. Gibbs pulled the top drawer open on the nearest desk, which happened to be Tony's. He pulled out the very letter opener that Ziva had once coveted so much, and began to slowly open the letter.

"Boss, I'm not sure if that's a good idea: we don't have an official investigation going on that involves Ziva, and by opening her private mail-" Another patent Gibbs glare and McGee shut up. He did notice, however, that Gibbs was careful to not actually cut the paper. They could easily glue the letter shut again. Gibbs pulled out the small pieces of paper to look at, and let the envelope flutter to the desk. When everyone craned their necks to see, Gibbs flipped the small, stiff papers around so they couldn't see it.

"It's Ziva's. Once I say so." Gibbs said flatly, before stuffing the pieces of paper in to the envelope again and slamming it onto the desk. He walked quickly up the stairs towards MTAC.

"Jethro?"Ducky questioned, trailing him to the bottom of the stairs. Gibbs didn't even turn around.

"I need to have a word with the Director of Mossod." He said flatly, before turning the corner into MTAC. Tony resisted the temptation of the letter for about five seconds before scooting over to his desk.

"Tony…" Ducky intoned warningly, but Tony waved him off.

"Time figure out what's really going on 'round here." He muttered as he picked up the letter. And despite Ducky's original warning, he and everyone else gathered around him. He carefully pulled out the papers, before staring at them in shock.


End file.
